I stepped into the room, inhaling the heady scent of flowers. Red roses had been placed in vases, which covered every available surface in his penthouse. The lights had been dimmed, and silver candles lit the room in a warm glow.
A small table sat by one of the windows, silver domes covering two plates. Next to the plates, a bucket of ice held a bottle of champagne. I glanced at Samael but he was already walking toward the table and pulling out one of the chairs.
I followed him over and sat down.
“I dismissed the staff. They left dessert in the fridge in my kitchen. I would prefer to spend this time alone with you.”
His tone, his words, for whatever reason, they heated my cheeks and he smiled. Then he leaned over and plucked the dome from my plate, revealing steak, mashed potatoes, and green beans.
I couldn’t help but laugh. “This is the meal you tried to feed me when I first woke up in your bed. God, it feels like years ago.”
“You took a bite of each and then disappeared. I thought maybe you’d like to finish the meal.”
I marveled at it, my stomach growling again. “You thought right.” I covered my mashed potatoes in enough salt to make Samael wince, added butter, and took a mouthful, then I tried the steak.
“Mmm. Good.”
“You never told me how you managed to sneak out of my tower that day,” Samael said as we ate.
I swallowed and reached for my glass of champagne. It slid down my throat, cool and refreshing. I slid him a look. “Promise you won’t lose your mind?”
He raised one eyebrow but finally nodded.
“Misty.”
It took him a second and then his gaze dropped to my hip. I took another sip of champagne. “Since I’d so kindly fed it with blood from the hellhound, it was able to replicate a look-away spell.”
He winced and I nodded. “Yeah. It wasn’t ideal, but I felt trapped. I would’ve done almost anything to get out of your tower.”
Samael sat back in his seat and watched me out of dark silver eyes. “And now?”
“Now I’m enjoying a very excellent meal and drinking champagne with the demon I thought I wanted dead. Life is weird.”
He laughed and butterflies danced in my stomach at the sound. Maybe that was the champagne.
I spent the rest of the meal interrogating him.
I wanted to know more about what made Samael tick. More about the events and experiences that had shaped him into the man he was today. I’d had a glimpse of the horror that had sliced through his life when he was just a kid, but Samael had been alive for so long that it gave me a headache attempting to wrap my head around it.
I was curious about the demons bonded to him. How did Samael make decisions? Was any of it a democracy? Did he outsource some of his rule, or did he micromanage his people?
“I learned early on that when you trust people to do their jobs, they rarely disappoint you,” he said at one point. He sipped his champagne and the candlelight danced over his face, highlighting the strong line of his jaw, the gleam of silver eyes.
He smiled at me, looking content, relaxed, and… happy.
It hit me like a punch in the face.
This whole time, I’d fought this thing between us because I thought I’d lose myself. Whenever Samael did something that proved he wasn’t close to human, I’d used it as evidence that we could never work. Even thoughIwasn’t even entirely human.
Samael may not be the man I’d expected to find one day. But he was more than I’d ever imagined. And even when I had doubts about our ability to be together without constantly wanting to kill each other, I knew one absolute: he loved me.
There was no other explanation for the way he came when I needed help, protected my friends and family, and taught me how to use my power to protect myself. I’d seen the baffled surprise on his demons’ faces every time he involved himself in my life. For a demon as old and powerful as Samael was, it was likely unheard of.
He’d told me he was a patient man and I’d laughed. But hemustbe patient. He’d watched me take two steps forward and three back every time I fought what my heart had known for weeks now. Vas was right. I could see happiness, and I’d been refusing to reach for it.
“Little witch?”
I was in love with him. Wildly, inescapably, andalwaysfrustratingly in love with him. I was finally admitting it to myself, without reservation.
